Notes: While the M-76 replaced the M-62, the M-90 replaced the M-76. It is
also an evolutionary update of the two previous designs, using stronger
materials, new plastic magazines, a stronger folding butt (which folds to the
side), a full muzzle brake instead of a flash suppressor, and sights that
withstand more abuse and are both easier to adjust and can be more finely
adjusted, as well as having tritium inlays. The M-90 is built in 7.62mm
Kalashnikov and 5.56mm NATO calibers, with the 7.62mm Kalashnikov version being
used by Finnish armed forces. The M-90 can launch both rifle grenades that
require a muzzle adapter and more modern bullet-trap designs. The 5.56mm version
can also fire the RAW. Both models can mount the M-203 or BG-25/30 grenade
launchers or grenade launchers that use similar weapon mounts. Though the M-90
was offered for export, the Finnish government is mum on who they sold any to,
if anyone.

Twilight 2000 Notes: By the time of Finnish entry into hostilities, Finland
had not managed to quite replace half of its stock of M-76s.

Merc 2000 Notes: Oddly enough, both calibers of this weapon were common
sights in the hands of both Israeli and American special operations forces, and
the M-90 was known as a weapon that could turn up in the oddest places.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

M-90

7.62mm Kalashnikov

3.85 kg

30

$876

M-90

5.56mm NATO

3.85 kg

30

$633

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

SS

Burst

Range

M-90 (7.62mm)

5

4

2-Nil

4/6

3

7

46

M-90 (5.56mm)

5

3

1-Nil

4/6

2

4

41

Sako M-95

Notes: This is a further development of the M-90, enhanced primarily in the
areas of structural strength, and a few other improvements. Some of these
improvements include an enlarged trigger guard to allow the wearing of arctic
gloves, a slight relocation of the selector lever to make sure the stock is not
in the way when it is folded, flip sights which include a special position for
CQB, a fixed rear sight, with adjustments being done from the front sight, and a
slightly lengthened barrel. The 7.62mm version is also capable of using a
silencer along with subsonic ammunition (though automatic fire through the
silencer is not recommended). It is otherwise virtually identical to the M-90.
The Finnish government ordered one small batch of these weapons in 1997
(designating them the RK-95TP), and then abruptly cancelled the order due to
budgetary reasons. By 2000, production of the M-95 had virtually ceased, though
Sako was still had the weapon in its catalog as available for sale.

Twilight 2000 Notes: In 1996, with the outbreak of the Twilight War, Finland
rushed into production of the Model 95 rifles for use by their military forces;
the primary reason for this choice was the capability to use both NATO and
Warsaw Pact ammunition, both of which Finland had in quantity. However, the
Model 95 had not reached full production by the 1997 nuclear exchange, and so
the M-90 rifle is still the predominant rifle to be encountered. It is estimated
that only 9000 M-95 rifles had been produced by the time of the nuclear
exchanges.

Merc 2000 Notes: This weapon has the same sort of status as the M-90, but in
lesser numbers.

Weapon

Ammunition

Weight

Magazines

Price

M-95

7.62mm Kalashnikov

3.76 kg

30

$879

M-95 (Silenced)

7.62mm Kalashnikov Subsonic

4.34 kg

30

$1394

M-95

5.56mm NATO

3.76 kg

30

$635

Weapon

ROF

Damage

Pen

Bulk

Mag

SS

Burst

Range

M-95 (7.62mm)

5

4

2-Nil

5/6

30

3

7

47

M-95 (7.62mm w/Silencer)

5

3

1-Nil

8/9

30

2

6

34

M-95 (5.56mm)

5

3

1-Nil

4/6

30

2

4

42

Valmet M-60 (Rk.60)

Notes: The M-60 was the first of the Finnish "improved Kalashnikovs." Though internally almost identical to the AKM, the M-60 is externally very different, with a plastic handguard that does not cover the gas tube, a plastic pistol grip, tubular steel stock, and a different-shaped receiver designed to take a better rear sight and optional optical sights or night vision equipment. The 16.55-inch barrel was tipped with a large three-prong flash suppressor.

There were two basic models of the M-60. The M-60A had no trigger guard (in order to allow its use with fingerless mittens), and the receiver was a carefully machined forging (stronger, but more expensive and difficult to produce). The M-60B had a rubber coating for the tubular steel butt, a trigger guard which could hinge away from the trigger, and the ability to use several different bayonet types (including detachable folding bayonets). About 200 of each were made (though most M-60As were later modified to the M-60B standard and called FM-60s), and they are essentially identical for game purposes.

The M-62 started life as an experimental improvement of the M-60B, but quickly became a service weapon, with Qatar and Indonesia as well as Finland. The M-62 uses a simplified receiver cover, the handguard was ribbed, and the pistol grip shaped differently; in addition, the stock folds. The plastic parts were originally dark green, but the color was changed to black for most production rifles. At first, the gas tube of the M-62 was partially enclosed in a stamped steel liner, but most have their gas tubes totally enclosed. Variants of the M-62 include the M-62PT, introduced in 1972 and adding some refinements such as better protection for the iron sights, tritium inlays for the iron sights, and a return to the stronger machined-steel receiver. The M-62S was a semiautomatic civilian/police version (produced primarily for export); this version often had wooden furniture when sold in the US, but other versions had the M-62s standard layout or a folding stock.

The short-lived M-71 variant used a stamped steel receiver and a front sight almost identical to that of the AKM. The stock was folding and synthetic, and apparently a modification of that of the FN CAL. The handguard completely surrounded the gas tube, and though synthetic, basically looked like that of the AKM. Unlike the AKM, the bolt has a hold-open device and a bolt catch. A variant is the M-71S, was chambered in 5.56mm NATO and intended for export, with a semiautomatic-only civilian/police version also available. The M-71S apparently did not do well; and the M-71 did not either, being produced only from 1971-73, though they were carefully placed into storage.

The M-76 returned to a modified M-62 pattern, though it had a stamped steel receiver rather than the machined receiver of the M-62. The M-76 was produced in two calibers, with the 5.56mm NATO version mostly being exported (though 7.62mm versions were also exported), in both automatic and semiautomatic forms. These were known as the M-76F. 5.56mm models replaced the M-62s in Quatar and Indonesia, but in Finland, the troops apparently preferred the more robust M-62B. In 1976, this led to the M-62/76, which, though it had a modified fire selection mechanism internally, used a machined steel receiver. The plastic furniture, however, is lighter and stronger, and the rubber coating on the stock is also slightly slighter and more durable. The barrel is a bit shorter at 16.3 inches, and the flash suppressor is reduced in size. An M-62/76T version was also produced with a folding stock. The M-76W has a fixed wooden stock, the M-76P has a fixed plastic stock, the M-76T has a folding stock similar to that of the M-62, and the M-76F has a folding plastic butt.

The M-82 was a rare variant of the M-76 (and is also referred to as the M-76B). The change in the design is easily apparent – the M-82 has a bullpup construction, enclosed in an almost one-piece synthetic shell. (Pre-production versions were actually enclosed in a wooden shell, which had to be carved in an expensive, time-consuming, and laborious process.) The barrel is tipped by an M-16-type birdcage flash suppressor, and is capable of launching most rifle grenades in the world today. The trigger guard is larger than the rest of the M-76 series, allowing for the use of bulky gloves, and can be hinged away from the trigger as well. The M-82 was designed for airborne troops and special operations troops, both for domestic use and for export. However, during field trials and early in the short deployment of the M-82, Finnish Paratroopers discovered a problem with the M-82: the position of the sights. While the front sight remained near the muzzle (a protected post upon a large raised triangular mount), the rear sights were moved to a position near the center of the weapon. Since Finnish paratroopers parachuted with the M-82 uncased atop their reserve chute, a bad PLF often led to facial injuries, sometimes to the point of broken noses or teeth. A fall atop the M-82 could do the same thing. Such dislike of the weapon by the troops using it may have led to the very short production run of the M-82.

Twilight 2000 Notes: Placed into storage in Finland and Qatar, M-62s were eventually taken back out storage and issued to territorial, paramilitary, and militia units. Some of the former Finnish M-62s eventually ended up in the hands Swedish partisans fighting the Russians. Indonesian M-62s had largely disappeared by the Twilight War (officially, they were listed as destroyed), but for the next 40 years, they could be found in the hands of scattered partisans, rebel groups, and even pirates in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific. M-71s were taken out of storage and quickly issued to newly-raised forces. The M-62/76 was, for the most part, the assault rifle that Finland went to war with. Indonesia did too, but it was just a part of the hodgepodge that they used, much to the chagrin of Indonesian armorers and supply personnel. Though an emergency production order for 1200 M-82s was authorized by the Finnish government in 1997, only 776 examples were actually produced. These mostly went to security troops and certain bodyguard details.

A further version, the M-78, is both a designated marksman version, with a heavy, 24.5-inch barrel and a bipod. The only stock is a wooden stock, and the M-78 fires only on semiautomatic. The side of the receiver has a bracket for mounting optics. (Note: This weapon should not be confused with the M-78 automatic rifle, though they are very similar and both based on the M-76.)

Merc 2000 Notes: Similar to the Notes, except that Indonesian M-62s eventually found their way into the hands of various insurgent groups in Southeast Asia, mostly under mysterious circumstances. The M-82 is just one of those weapons normally found only as curiosities among weapon collectors or in museums.